Hibbing council approves $364,003 change order, hears construction update on public safety center

Hibbing City Council on Jan. 21 heard a construction update on the Hibbing Public Safety Center and approved several change orders the city’s project team said were needed after excavation and design adjustments.

Patrick Sims, the project representative, told the council the team encountered unanticipated conditions during demolition and excavation but said, “Overall, the project's going well.” Project staff described completed demolition, soil stabilization, sanitary sewer work and stormwater improvements and said construction is proceeding through the winter with temperature monitoring in concrete pours.

Senior superintendent Tom Burnett described below‑grade work and foundation sequencing, saying, “We're in a deep hole,” as he showed photos of piling, vibratory stone columns and concrete pours required for the foundation. He said the team had worked with OSHA as a consulting presence and that inspections on Oct. 21 and Dec. 16 produced only minor, non‑recordable observations.

City materials presented several proposal requests (identified in the presentation as PR2, PR3, PR5 and miscellaneous field requests) that the team said were needed to address code comments from the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, reroute plumbing, decommission an existing fire alarm system and change certain precast panel details. The council was shown an itemized set of change orders: about $173,627.25 in Central Range Public Works items and a separate $364,003.71 change order tied to the Public Safety Building work. The packet showed a project base bid and contingency lines the presenters said would cover most changes; the team said owner, contract and design team contingencies are used to manage risk.

Councillor Whitney moved to approve the Central Range Public Works change order, and the council approved it by voice vote after a brief clarification on amount. Later the council approved the Public Safety Building change order on a motion by Councillor Bayless and a second; the motion passed by voice vote. Council discussion focused on which contingency bucket would absorb the approved amounts and whether the schedule impact would extend the completion date. The project team noted a requested 95‑day extension on the front page of the change order package that would align completion to a December 2026 target.

What happens next: city staff and the project team will finalize contract documents and post any revised schedule; council members asked staff to work with legal counsel on the mechanical steps for processing change orders.